The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS)

Pages in The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS)

Overview

If someone lacks the capacity to make decisions about their care, treatment and accommodation they may need to be deprived of their liberty in order to keep them safe. This is known as a Deprivation of Liberty under the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

A Deprivation of Liberty is:

putting someone under the deprivation of liberty safeguard to keep them safe

restricting someone’s freedom to give them constant supervision and care

for those are in a care home or hospital for treatment but can’t make choices in their best interest

If someone is under a Deprivation of Liberty:

a representative will be identified. This will be a family member, friend or a paid representative who will visit and check they’re being looked after in a way that means they’re safe

they can ask for a review

they or their representative disagree with the deprivation, they can ask for the court of protection to decide if they should be deprived of their liberty